"WHY SHOULD I SURRENDER MY RAM T0 BJP’

Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor takes a range of questions on ideologies, secularism and erosion of Congress vote bank in the 14th edition of Delhi Dialogues

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SANTWA NA BHATTACHARYA Do we even need to introduce Shashi Tharoor? He's a politician whose popularity and presence far exceeds the domain of politics. The only Congressman outside the Gandhi family who has instant recall and even fan following across states. He is second to none in articulating and defending the Nehru legacy at a time when it is under challenge.

And also, brave enough to stand for inner-party democracy. So we are talking about an engaged politician, about a celebrity not just in India, but across South Asia, Britain and beyond - and also a public intellectual.

A rare breed these days. A three-term MP from Thiruvananthapuram, a former minister, international civil servant, prolific author, a mega social media star and the patent-holder on an enviable vocabulary. Also, one of our bestread columnists.

He has also seen his share of controversies the latest being the speculation, which pops up every now and then, on whether he'll join the lengthening queue at the party's exit door! 

SHASHI THAROOR: My politics is often misunderstood because I don't parrot a certain line. People who overlook the question of why I am in politics are the ones who talk of the possibility of me going off to the BJP ecosystem. The BJP was the first party to invite me to join immediately after I quit the race for the top UN post.

Since I could not find common ground with the party on certain issues, I joined the Congress as I was comfortable with the party's policies.